Japan will launch a tender for fighter jets as soon as mid-July, the Ministry of Defence said, in a deal seen worth up to $40 billion as Tokyo seeks to bolster its air defenses amid creeping tension with China over disputed maritime borders.
That reported by REUTERS.
In one of the biggest fighter jet contracts up for grabs in years, a ministry spokesman said Japan will contact foreign and domestic defense contractors soon after a July 5 deadline for expressions of interest in the tender for about 100 warplanes.
People familiar with the matter said U.S. firms Boeing Co (BA.N) and Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) have been invited to take part in the project, dubbed the F-3 fighter jet program, alongside Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd (MHI) (7011.T), the prime domestic contractor.